Let’s face it, eating healthy today isn’t an easy thing. Consider, for example, the conflicted information on nutrition provided in the media’s medical reporting. It’s entirely possible to find an article about the negative impact of eating eggs on the same day one finds an article on how they are much healthier than previously reported!
Needless to say, it can be confusing and time-consuming and that’s particularly true when it comes to singles, who often place convenience ahead of nutrition. In today’s fast-paced world, many single men and women simply don’t invest much time and effort into healthy eating. Given statistics on obesity, this seems true even for those trying to lose or maintain their weight.
That’s the impetus for this blog, which you can read weekly here at Oklahoma Magazine online.
I don’t pretend to bring you experience or expertise as a nutritionist or as a physician. Instead I will bring you consensus positions from those experts and also share lessons and discoveries based on my own experiences. I am single and have struggled with my weight since I was a child. I weighed over 200 pounds by the time I reached middle school and had horrible eating habits, which then continued as a single person more likely to phone dinner in than to cook from whole, fresh ingredients. As a 20-something, I was facing escalating blood pressure and cholesterol level and it was clear something had to change.
After considerable research, I spent the past two years devising a lifestyle eating plan (NOT a diet) built on so-called superfoods and the best possible nutritional information available. The result is that I have lost 100 pounds without surgery, without paying for medical advice beyond the norm, without ever feeling hungry, and without depriving my body of anything it needs. At 44 years-old, I weigh less than I did in high school, have lower blood pressure, virtually no cholesterol and enjoy, every night, imaginative and delicious cooking just for myself to support these changes.
In the weeks to come, I am going to share with you what I have learned — how to, as a single person, shop, cook and eat in a healthy way that will absolutely result in a lighter, happier, healthier you. While I am not an expert, and I can attest only to what works for me, tips from my personal journey may help inspire you to begin your own eating as a single person. With tips and recipes, Healthy Cuisine For The Single may very well help couples and families as well, but the impetus is the single for whom eating poorly is easy and common.
Our goal is to share and learn from each other en route to better eating habits, and I hope you join me on this trip!
Feel free to reply to this blog or reach me directly at my email address below and I am open to topic suggestions, comments, criticism and your own personal experiences.
I look forward to sharing all with you that I have learned, and to growing, learning and getting healthy together.
-Michael W. Sasser is Oklahoma Magazine’s senior editor and an award-winning journalist. Reach him at [email protected].
